IVORY COAST: Government to be announced on February 23 after successful mediation talks

Record ID: 182014

  • Title: IVORY COAST: Government to be announced on February 23 after successful mediation talks
  • Date: 23rd February 2010
  • Summary: ABIDJAN, IVORY COAST (FEBRUARY 22, 2010) (REUTERS) (CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY) VARIOUS OF MEDIATOR AND BURKINA FASO PRESIDENT BLAISE COMPAORE, IVORY COAST PRESIDENT LAURENT GBAGBO AND PRIME MINISTER GUILLAUME SORO MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (French) IVORY COAST PRIME MINISTER GUILLAUME SORO SAYING: "I am happy to inform you that these talks have been fruitful and permitted the actors on the Ivorian political scene to reach a deal to advance the process of coming out of the crisis, and particularly to bring back peace to our country." MEDIA LISTENING (SOUNDBITE) (French) IVORY COAST PRIME MINISTER GUILLAUME SORO SAYING: "In my role as prime minister, I'm also happy to inform you that tomorrow I will announce the Ivory Coast government, and we will also hold a ministerial council meeting." COMPAORE, SORO AND GBAGBO SHAKING HANDS FORMER PRESIDENT HENRI KONAN BEDIE AND FORMER PRIME MINISTER ALASSAN OUATTARA COMING OUT OF THE LIFT VARIOUS OF THE MEN MEETING
  • Embargoed: 10th March 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: International Relations,Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA1WW6FL1UUZDUFXPVC35LKGUPG
  • Story Text: The Ivory Coast will announce the new government on Tuesday after successful mediation talks, Prime Minister Soro says.
    Ivorian Prime Minister Guillaume Soro said he will announce the new Ivorian government on Tuesday (February 23), after Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore mediated talks between Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo and the opposition.
    Compaore mounted pressure on Gbagbo to get the peace process back on track, as anti-government protests continued to errupt across the country.
    Compaore, the mediator in Ivory Coast's conflict, urged Ivorian leaders to respect the Ouagadougou deal.
    "I am happy to inform you that these talks have been fruitful and permitted the actors on the Ivorian political scene to reach a deal to advance the process of coming out of the crisis, and particularly to bring back peace to our country," Soro said after the meeting with Compaore.
    "I'm also happy to inform you that tomorrow I will announce the Ivory Coast government, and we will also hold a ministerial council meeting," Soro added.
    Public anger is gathering steam after years of delays to the election timetable. The polls are meant to draw a line under a bitter 2002-03 civil war that split the country in two and brought economic growth to a near stand still.
    Ivorian soldiers opened fire on protesters in the western town of Daloa on Monday (February 22), killing two people and wounding more than 15, according to a local sergeant.
    It was the second confirmed incident in which Ivorian forces have shot and killed demonstrators in a week of protests against President Gbagbo, escalating already high tensions after he disbanded the government and electoral commission.
    On Friday (February 19), military killed at least five protesters at a rally in the western city of Gagnoa.
    The opposition, who also met with Compaore earlier on Monday has called for mass action to continue until Gbagbo reinstates the electoral commission.
    Gbagbo dissolved the commission after accusing its chief Robert Mambe of illegally adding names to the electoral register to boost the opposition vote and Ivory Coast is now certain to miss a March deadline to hold presidential polls that were already four-and-a-half years overdue.
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